New Mountain Dew Kickstart Black Cherry Freeze at Taco Bell: Is it as Bad as the Original?

A few weeks ago I tried Mountain Dew’s Kickstart juice/energy/soda drink in Black Cherry and Fruit punch. Much to my disappointment, all I was left with was a headache and a bad taste in my mouth. The packaging had confusing wording, the flavors were off or not present, and the energy boost was non-existent.

Needless to say I was more than skeptical when Taco Bell rolled out the new Mountain Dew Kickstart Black Cherry Freeze. Would it lack flavor like the energy drink? Is it actually worth buying? Is it refreshing? These questions raced through my mind as I pulled up to Taco Bell.

I ordered a regular (16 oz) Mountain Dew Kickstart Black Cherry Freeze for $1.99 along with the Mountain Dew Baja Blast Freeze and the Mountain Dew Typhoon Freeze for the same price. I could have amped it up with the large (20 oz) Freeze or if I had made Taco Bell’s Happier Hour (2 p.m.-5 p.m. daily), Freezes would have been $1, but I wasn’t sure if the Freezes would actually be worth it after the Kickstart juice drink.

On first impression the drinks actually look like their picture. In this day and age with all the Photoshopping and manipulation and enhancements, you know that the food you see in the picture is never what’s going to be on your plate. It’s just like models; airbrushing sells products no matter what they are. Maybe it’s because they’re drinks and it’s easier to make them look like the real thing, I’m not sure, but I was glad I finally had a product that came just as advertised.

Since summer is fast approaching, and in Arizona that means everyone hides away with their A/C, I was hoping that these Taco Bell Mountain Dew Freezes would be the perfect way for me to cool down. Surprisingly, the Kickstart Black Cherry Freeze was the most delicious out of all three and I would definitely grab any of these drinks during the summer.

Mountain Dew Baja Blast Freeze and the Mountain Dew Typhoon Freeze were introduced back in the fall and are ideal for helping you cool down. The Kickstart Black Cherry flavor is new to the Taco Bell Freeze line-up, but it has the best flavor out of all three.

Strangely enough, the Mountain Dew Kickstart Black Cherry energy drink was the worst out of the two I tried earlier. How can a Freeze have so much more flavor than the actual drink? They use the drink to inspire the Freeze. For a Freeze though, it would make sense to use more liquid flavoring to combat the ice melting and diluting the flavor. Mountain Dew should take a page out of the Freeze’s book and up the flavor in the actual juice/soda/energy drink.

My first sip of the Mountain Dew Black Cherry Freeze was the perfect mix of what you imagine black cherry to taste like and sweet, cold slushie. It had a ton of great flavoring, was light with just the right amount of cherry, and it was refreshing. Although it didn’t taste very much like the original Mountain Dew Kickstart Black Cherry drink, that was a huge plus in my book. The extra flavoring certainly helped and the mix of ingredients was spot on. I even turned the A/C off in my car because I was drinking it so quickly. I would definitely say this is my new summer drink to help me get out of the heat.

As for the other two flavors, I would recommend these as well. They’re better than the typical red cherry or blue raspberry flavors you can get at most gas stations and they have interesting flavor combinations. The Mountain Dew Typhoon Freeze tasted like a mix of watermelon, strawberry, fruit punch, carbonation, and slushie ice. It didn’t taste sugary, even though there’s a bunch in the drink, and again, I felt refreshed after having drank some of it. Brain freezes aside, the Mountain Dew Typhoon Freeze gets a thumbs-up from me.

The Mountain Dew Baja Blast Freeze was also a great mix of lemon-lime flavors, carbonation, and refreshed me. This drink tasted a lot more sugary than the other two. It was basically like a lemon-lime popsicle was chopped up in a blender to make this drink. Savory and sweet all wrapped up in a slushie. Another great Freeze from Taco Bell. Good job, TB.

Now I would also recommend adding a little alcohol to these items for a great margarita-style treat. You can spend the $2 to get a regular 16 oz Mountain Dew Freeze and then go home, add a little booze and voila! Instant summer cocktail.

These Taco Bell Freezes will help you deal with 100+ degree weather in the desert or make you smile during a Monsoon storm. They can help you deal with a crappy summer job or allow you to enjoy a trip out on your boat with a little something extra (booze) to add to the fun of your day.

I would recommend all of the freezes and am still extremely shocked that the original Mountain Dew Kickstart beverage was so far off from the freeze. I guess their second draft outshined the first or they managed to create a better Black Cherry Kickstart recipe for the freeze. They should start using that same recipe for their flavor-lacking juice drink.

With a great mix of light summer flavors and some bubbly carbonation the new Mountain Dew Black Cherry Kickstart, Typhoon, and Baja Blast Freezes are sure to become a regular part of your summer afternoons whether you’re hanging out by the pool or working in your cubicle from 9-5.

I am in deep-fried love with food and travel. With Italian roots, I have a weakness for bread, marinara, and mozzarella. I’ll try anything once and am constantly searching for intriguing places to visit. When I'm not savoring the last bite or organizing my next trip, I'm indulging my inner bookworm and writing about my adventures. If you turn on college football and give me a local craft beer, you’ll see the happiest Hokie on the West coast.